ABC TV's 'S.H.I.E.L.D' opens big with 12.2 million viewers

(Reuters) - New ABC drama "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." garnered strong ratings in its Tuesday debut, grabbing 12.2 million viewers overall and ranking first in its time slot among viewers ages 18 to 49, the group most prized by advertisers, according to Nielsen ratings data.

Ratings for the one-hour show, which aired opposite CBS drama "NCIS" and NBC singing contest "The Voice," were the highest for a drama debut in nearly four years, ABC said.

"NCIS" was the most-watched show overall on Tuesday night with 20.0 million total viewers, according to Nielsen. "The Voice" pulled in 14.4 million over its two hours.

"S.H.I.E.L.D." is ABC's effort to translate the movie success of Disney's Marvel comics franchise to TV and help lift the broadcast network's ratings.

For the TV season that ended in May, ABC's prime-time lineup ranked fourth among the broadcast networks for 18-to-49-year-olds, and second in total viewers, according to Nielsen.